The release of the Tamil version of John Abraham and Nargis Fakhri starrer Madras Cafe has been held by the High Court till Central Board of Film Certification clears it.
Some political groups in the state have sought a ban on the film, set to open on August 23.
While Viswaroopam
provoked the ire of Muslim organisations, which felt that the movie portrayed their community in bad light, a hitherto unheard of political outfit raised objections to Thalaivaa being screened. Finally, it seemed that Thalaivaa’s tagline, Time to Lead, had offended Tamil Nadu’s ruling party. It was promptly removed, and the film opened in the State on Tuesday.

As far as Madras Café goes, the issue pertains to Sri Lankan Tamils that has always been a thorny question in Tamil Nadu, a State where Tamil chauvinism has been the bedrock of some of the Dravidian parties.

Vaiko’s Marumalarchi Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam and Naam Tamizhar have said that Madras Cafe must not be shown. This comes after it has been duly certified by the Central Board of Film Certification with an UA.

Madras Café plots the story of an intelligence officer (Abraham) against the backdrop of the Sri Lankan ethnic crisis and the assassination of India’s charismatic former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi. The title refers to an imaginary café in London where the conspiracy was said to have been hatched.

Both Sircar and Abraham have argued that the film is purely fictional, though inspired by real events.